ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The Legs For Life(R) National Screening and Awareness Program for Peripheral Vascular Disease (PVD) was launched in 1999. A critical component of the screening program was an independent evaluation to provide additional information about the results of the program. This evaluation considers the health education impacts of the screening program; participants' knowledge about appropriate providers; and some of the outcomes associated with the program. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The evaluation is based on a representative sample of 700 individuals who participated in the screening program and responded to a six-page closed-ended mail questionnaire 6 months after the screening. The sample was drawn in a two-stage cluster. A sample of 1,000 individuals was drawn using random selection of low-risk participants and oversampling of all high- and medium-risk participants from 22 sites. RESULTS: More than 80% of the respondents remembered the name of the test (ankle-brachial index) given during the screening program. More than half the respondents reported being informed during the screening that leg pain when walking was a symptom of PVD, and 40% reported being told that numbness in the leg was a symptom. The majority of respondents were able to identify ways to prevent or slow the progression of PVD, whereas just under 50% were able to identify those individuals that would be at higher risk for PVD. Respondents most frequently identified vascular surgeons (42%), family or primary care physicians (22%), and cardiologists (19%) as the type of doctor to see for PVD treatment, whereas only 4.8% of screening participants recognized interventional radiologists as specialists appropriate to dealing with PVD. CONCLUSION: Evidence from participants in the Legs For Life(R) National Screening Program suggests that the program has met its initial goals of education, identification, and treatment for those identified with PVD. While many specialties manage this condition, the evaluation indicates there is much to be done in increasing the awareness of interventional radiologists and their role in the diagnosis and treatment of PVD.
